K-Pop Icons IU, BoA & Jang Wonyoung Are Suing Trolls For Defamation Amid Escalating Online Hate ( Photo Credit – Instagram )
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Being famous isn’t always rainbows and sunshine; it often brings a lot of problems. Staying under the spotlight often follows a constant scrutiny from people, and whatever you do gets measured by the public. It can be appreciated or it can be brutally hated, and that might affect your mental peace. That’s what’s been happening to the Korean celebrities recently.
Many K-pop artists like IU (idol-turned-actress), BoA, and IVE’s Jang Wonyoung have been facing the same thing. And this growing public rage and backlash are happening because of the social media platforms. It’s getting easier to attack the top entertainers nowadays. So, they have taken legal action against malicious defamation and character assassinations. Scroll ahead to find out what has happened with these female K-pop celebs.
BoA Takes Action Against The Offensive Graffiti
On June 13, 2025, Seoul’s Gangnam Police stated that they detained a 30-year-old woman on the charge of property damage and drawing explicit graffiti images targeting BoA. She has reportedly done it in 10 different places, including bus stops and electrical panels. Through the graffiti, the woman tried to defame her and wrote hateful phrases that were meant to accuse her of vulgar things, referencing sexually transmitted diseases.
A suspect who wrote defamatory graffiti about singer BoA at various locations across Seoul has been apprehended by police. https://t.co/xfHc7mZZSK
— The Korea JoongAng Daily (@JoongAngDaily) June 13, 2025
The K-pop artist’s agency, SM Entertainment, took quick action and submitted a complaint on June 11, 2025, after receiving multiple fan reports and further monitoring the situation. Talking about it, SM Entertainment shared an official statement that read, “This is a serious defamation issue. We are cooperating with authorities to ensure a thorough investigation.”
IU Goes Through Constant Harassment
Singer-songwriter and popular South Korean actress IU has been facing continuous attacks from malicious commentators. Previously, in December 2023, a woman in her 40s was fined 3 million KRW for posting explicit and offensive remarks. Now, she has been fined, once again, an additional 3 million KRW for repeating the same thing. Even though she tried to prove herself innocent by citing her mental health problems and a lack of literary clarity as her proof, the court rejected all of them.
Seoul Court Fines Woman 3 Million KRW For Malicious Comments Targeting K-Pop Star #IUhttps://t.co/hsm5zZo7RM
The offensive remarks were about her sexual innuendos and bribing the judges, and these have been shared under IU’s agency, EDAM Entertainment.
Jang Wonyoung Wins Legal Battle Against Malicious Commentator
IVE’s member Jang Wonyoung recently faced a lot of trouble over some factless rumors. She took legal action against the YouTuber ‘Sojang’ who spread these malicious rumors between 2021 to 2023 that were damaging her reputation and even won the battle. Wonyoung, along with her agency, Starship Entertainment, pursued a 200 million KRW lawsuit.
IVE Wonyoung will continue the legal battle against Sojang with no leniency.
The possibility of an agreement was also raised, but Starship Entertainment and Jang Wonyoung maintained their stance that they would go to the end without leniency. pic.twitter.com/A7D5lYdWJU
On June 4, the court passed the judgment in favor of the plaintiffs. The judge asked the defendant to pay 50 million KRW to Starship for all the damages that they caused, with interest rates applying retroactively from August 2023 according to KBIzoom. However, the additional litigation that was filed by Wonyoung is still pending.
It’s no secret that Korean celebrities are told to endure all the hard criticism that comes with fame, but the way people have started behaving is going a little out of control. Many K-world fans have stated that the online outrageous behavioral pattern is quite similar to digital ‘terrorism.’ This should no longer be normalized, and the celebs should take legal help to deal with it. What do you think?
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